Meringue
by Liquid Ice
Summary: Ficmas. Usagi is forced to take care of a halfdead man much to her protest. But his appreciation ends up more than she bargain for. That is to say...


**Meringue**  
By: Liquid Ice

Author's Notes: Hiiro/Usagi if you squint real hard. Alternate verse. Christmas Fic. Their ages are free for interpretation.

* * *

**me·ringue**  
n.  
_1. A topping for pastry or pies made of a mixture of egg whites and sugar beaten until stiff and often baked until brown._

Usagi stared, her eyes narrowed with utter concentration, hoping, willing, _willing_ - she sighed angrily.

For that half-dead man in her room to wake up and go along his merry way so she can concentrate on other things than taking care of a complete stranger.

Like wrapping the presents she bought for her family and friends.

Try, for once in her entire life, to cook something edible that her friends can eat without dying from food poisoning.

Ha. Ha. Hah. Usagi is proud to say she's gotten better when she puts her mind to it. That takes sheer concentration and willpower. Terribly tiring.

She closed her eyes, muttering curses at the man for being half-dead and camatosed in her room (at least he was cute). Wondering why she felt bitter about the whole situation when she agreed to it at first place - although it took some mighty convincing on Ami's behalf...Usagi chuckled, remembering Ami and Rei's pleading form and how Minako or Makoto couldn't take care of the poor man because...well because they were Minako and Makoto and they were _scary_ when it came to the opposite sex. Especially since he was quite the looker.

Ami and Rei both were unavailable to care for him due to the fact that they were across seas.

At least the man was cooperative so to speak. Given the fact that he barely reacted to anything or moved an inch from his position, which was interesting. Taking care of him was pretty easy, making sure he still had a beating heart...his wounds didn't reopen...

He pissed her off because she couldn't do anything but be curious about him.

Rei informed her that they found him in the park, hidden by the bushes, bleeding to death. Without hesitation, Ami quickly dropped to his side and checked for a heartbeat, making sure his wounds were not affecting any of his vital organs (amazingly enough, no vital organs were harmed) and after treating the more serious wounds temporarily, she barked at Rei to help her carry him back to her clinic.

Usagi was instantly surprised by not only the news of her friends finding a bleeding stranger but by her own anxiety and sadness for the stranger.

_This man was attacked._ Her mind had whispered angrily.

And she wasn't able to do anything about it.

What kind of queen is she if she couldn't protect even him?

But it was not a monster that attacked him, Ami told her that bullet wounds were the cause of his bleeding and with quick work, she was able to take the bullets out and stitch his wounds easily. She wasn't the best doctor in Tokyo for nothing - Usagi was proud.

Funny how she kept insisting that he was a stranger.

"Hiiro Yui," she murmured, letting the feel of his name on her lips, "Does it hurt that you are hurt during Christmas?"

Ami had placed him in one of the rooms at the clinic temporarily and had automatically decided to send him to a proper hospital and let them take care of him.

Pluto had then appeared.

Hiiro Yui. Pilot. Gundam Wing. He who decides fate. Simple. Simple.

Christmas was a time to be happy...to celebrate. But the world was plunged into a war.

Humans are infinitely selfish.

Power. Greed. Money.

Soldiers are created and in the end, those soldiers; those who fight wars to strive for peace, to strive to find themselves, they are those who are hurt the most.

People always look for ways to make themselves miserable.

She couldn't interfere because she had her own war to attend to.

Even if she did, she didn't know if she could kill a person she promised to protect.

Usagi bought him a present.

"Have you ever had a Christmas?"

"Have you ever wanted to receive a Christmas present?"

"Did you believe in Santa Claus?"

Childish.

She was truly childish because she didn't know what it's like to be in a war. A war where everyone are potentially hurt because it might be a friend, a father, a son, a lover that they would kill. A child could be left alone. A mother would lose her precious child. A friend would lost her kindred spirit.

Her war was different. She knew she was fighting to keep these precious _lives_ to keep their existence. No matter how cruel it can be.

Existence of this universe was important.

She will always be there to protect it.

Usagi buried her head under the pillow, groaning. _It was Christmas Eve, goddamnit! Think happy thoughts..._ She was bored and she was sulking.

Lifting her head wearily, she stared lucidly at the window, the view of the city providing her some momentary distraction. Without sadness or death, without wars, they is no peace, there is no happiness. No beauty.

The corners of her mouth curled into a smile.

_And I will always be there to protect it._

Idly, she wondered if Hiiro likes meringue lemon pie. She shook her head. _Too bad, that's the only dessert he'll have anyways or I'll kill him._ A memory of working on her pie for the fourth time, Makoto amused by her frustration. She giggled at the thought, remembering her best friends' reactions to the first time she made cookies.

Placing two of her index fingers on her chest, just where her heart was located, Usagi closed her eyes. If she was going to suffer moaning about things not being done and wondering what sort of person Hiiro was, she wasn't going to be alone. She was going to have company, one that is _not_ camatosed plus she can find out exactly what his personality is like. Usagi hoped Hiiro wasn't one of those stoic jerks that will only talk if he was asked a question that he can easily answer with a grunt. She hated those types.

The silver crystal shimmered before her.

_Hiiro, I'll help you end the war early._

Usagi approached her room silently, determined, but an hazy, odd feeling constricted her throat.

A warning almost. Something important her mother once told her.

Usagi bit her lip thoughtfully, staring at her bedroom door.

What was it?

An advice.

_Be careful what you wish for..._

She touched the knob, almost hesitatingly and slowly turned it.

The door creaked.

_- or you might just get it._

Usagi found herself staring at a gun - _where in Beryl's name did he get that gun from?_

Her eyes dilated in surprise when he pulled the trigger not a moment later.

000

The moment he pulled the trigger, the very moment that bullet should have been lodged in her chest, it ricochet off her as if an invincible shield had surrounded her that very moment - _silver_? - and the bullet found home in the ceiling instead.

Hiiro blinked.

_What the - ?_

Curious.

He pulled the trigger again. She reacted by dropping to the ground, her arms covered her head. Something shiny dropped away from her.

Another bullet opted for its niche in the ceiling. Hiiro lowered his gun and stared.

"Y-you, you _asshole_!" She screeched hoarsely, noting the silence and him not shooting, for the moment. "This is what I get for taking care of you! Shooting at me twice? What kind of psycho are you? And where the hell did you get that gun from? You were buck naked of weaponry when you came here! I would know because I checked! Ami-chan checked! Pluto checked! Here I was thinking I would help you - "

It was...Hiiro frowned. The bullet didn't hurt her at all. How? She was cheating.

"You..." He started, interrupted her screeching, blinking at her with confusion.

She stiffened, her eyes widened upon realization of what just occured, never mind him attempting to kill her. Her head tilted to the side, Hiiro followed her gaze and his eyes found itself focusing on a rather large glittering jewel.

"Oh crap, I can't believe you did that," she moaned suddenly as she picked it up and disappeared.

It was his turn for his eyes to widen. His purpose of eliminating potential threats (aka the girl with the pigtails) and escaping soon dissolved into nothingness. There was something more crucial to address.

For one...how she managed to block the bullets.

Two; how the jewel disappeared.

Three, who or what she was.

Hiiro didn't believe in magic. Magic was nothing but a fantasy myth that children often imagine. But he wasn't about to believe that whatever blocked those bullets and protected her was some sort of technological creation because if it was and his enemies have found a way to do this, the unimaginable effects that it'll produce...

He found himself doubting.

If it was in the experimental stage?

She, the experiment? Are they watching her every move? Do they know that he's here?

Hiiro doubled over, falling to his knees when pain demanded his attention. He gritted his teeth, trying his best to control his emotions and his pain. He's done this before and he can do it again.

"That's what you get for being such an ass. Karma can be a bitch."

He stared; she at the very short amount of time he came to know her was already driving him insane. He was so confused, angry. Lost. _What had happened to me?_

Oh.

Hiiro raised his head and met a mirror of his eyes. Except hers was brighter, lighter and glittered with emotions he can't even comprehend.

He never wavered from her gaze.

Hiiro destroyed the silence, "who - what are you?" the words escaped from his mouth before he could reconsider.

She stared at him, expressionless, before her features lit up, her anger at being shot twice forgotten, her mouth quirked into a grin.

"A good Samaritan," She offered, curiosity suddenly the overwhelming emotion in her eyes, "My name is Usagi Tsukino and we found you in a park, almost dying but my best friend Ami-chan is a doctor and healed you up."

He watched her as she stood up and drew near to his side, wrapping her arms around his waist and gently motioned him to the bed.

"You probably want to go as soon as possible," she said, "but you were seriously injured, if Ami-chan and Rei-chan had found you any later, Ami-chan reckoned you probably be dead by then. Ami-chan wanted to send you to a proper hospital because there was no one at her clinic to watch you. Pluto-chan then appeared and said not to send you to a hospital because you might be in danger..." Usagi glanced at him, waiting for a reaction.

Hiiro froze. She shook her head.

"You're probably paranoid," she snickered, "I know because I've been there before. But all I can say is trust me and that whatever secrets you have or you're trying to hide is safe from me and my friends. Just as I trust you to keep the things you have seen." She bit her lip.

"You're in my home by the way and you've been in a coma for three weeks since Ami-chan and Rei-chan found you."

"...and I hate you." Usagi stuck her tongue out childishly, "So you better be a good boy and stay where you are or I'll sic Luna on you and I'm serious about this." She stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind her, muttering about what Hiiro assumed his instinctive reaction to shoot her. Twice.

Hiiro stared at the door and then removed his gaze from it to stare at his hands.

His stained hands.

He realized that there was something familiar about Usagi.

Usagi reminded him of Quatre.

000

"Grr...geez, stupid jerk, trying to kill me not once but twice. Twice!" Usagi garbled furiously, slamming the medicine door after retrieving painkillers and then proceeded to the kitchen to get him some food.

Her eyes trailed to the pie sitting quietly on the dinner table.

"If he's going to eat, then I'm going to eat as well," she declared.

Usagi paused, remembering Pluto explained to her what to tell him when he woke up, knowing fully well how'd he reacted...except for the shooting, Pluto didn't tell her he liked shooting. She slipped her hand in the pocket of her overalls reaching for the crystal almost desperately; once she wrapped her hand around it she gripped it tightly.

Assurance.

_Maybe later_...

She placed all the food that she was going to eat - and maybe share with Hiiro if he was a nice boy - in a tray and hurriedly return to her bedroom, half hoping that he was gone so that she can continue her life in peace and half hoping that he was still there, so that he can tell her how her pie tasted like.

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Author's Notes:  
I think unconsciously, I always thought that Hiiro was like one of them, where he can hide his gun in some sub-space pocket and can always summon it when he needs his precious gun. He just never realized that that's not a very normal thing to do and he does this almost instinctively, unconsciously and for granted. Lol 

This one was longer than I thought, hehe, Angel-chan, the world is ending neh? Although I can never beat Angelight's mad skills in writing very very very long chapters. OO scary. But gods, it was supposed to be a parody/humor where it ends when Hiiro pulls a trigger and do some sort news article about a 23 year old female dead but it became too angsty and more into Hiiro's atmosphere than anything else. Eh. It doesn't feel like a Christmas fic doesn't? So much for that anyways.

The other ending is..well...Hiiro kidnaps her and shows her to his fellow pilots like a kid with a new toy except, lol, it's Usagi - 'lookie, she's invincible, she's bulletproof!'. The story would then have to be longer and chaptered, something I don't want to do at the moment as my priority is **After**. Read that too please!

**HAPPY HOLIDAYS**


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